


Secrets of the woods

by salvatorestjohn



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Archery Lessons, Bad Flirting, F/F, First Kiss, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Love Confessions, Mutual Pining, Post-Nogitsune, Surprise Kissing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-11-03 19:08:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17883590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/salvatorestjohn/pseuds/salvatorestjohn
Summary: Allison has to blink once, twice, three times, her mouth falling open. The arrow never meets the piece of moss, stopped mid-air. She ignores how her stomach sinks and she deflates slightly. All she can do is stare at the hand now wrapped around her arrow, holding it just no more than two inches away from the tree."What the hell are you doing here?" she asks before she can think twice, her eyes following from the hand, up the arm, straight to the face of the Hale she's possibly been trying to avoid. "Are you following me or something?"Cora scoffs. "Following you? Please," she rolls her eyes, shifting her gaze to the arrow as she lowers it. "I have better things to do than follow an Argent around. And, I should be the one asking you what you're doing here." She looks back up at her, tilting her head, her eyebrows raising. "This is private property."





	Secrets of the woods

The preserve is unusually quiet. Peaceful, Allison might even say if she didn't know what sort of things and creatures lurk deeper in, hidden until nightfall. There's not one part of Beacon Hills that's ever really peaceful. Right now though, she isn't worried about that. She's much happier to take advantage of the calm, empty forest. It's the best place to be able to concentrate. 

She raises her arms, her left hand wrapped around the wood of her bow. The right holds the end of the arrow carefully between her fingers, against the string as she pulls it back. Usually, she wouldn't think this much, wouldn't be going so slowly. 

But things are only just getting back to normal after the post-affects of the sacrifice, and the Nogitsune, and her hands still shake now and then. If she's going to be practising for when the time comes that she needs to be able to hit a target, she'd rather take things slow. Even if that isn't exactly her strong suit. 

She focuses on the target she has her sights set on; a seemingly out of place piece of moss, right in the centre of a tree directly in front of her. There's nothing blocking her path, nothing to stop the shot, and nothing to distract her. As long as she doesn't think about the arrows she's already fired, somewhere ahead, having missed their target completely. 

She makes a mental note to go and find them after so that she won't have to explain to her dad why she's making a whole new batch of arrows. He worries enough as it is, she refuses to add to the list. 

Taking a deep breath in, feeling the cold air moving down her throat, she keeps her hands steady. It's not so hard this time, shaking considerably less. A spark of hope builds in the bottom of her stomach and she lets the arrow fly. 

She quickly lowers the bow, watching with wide eyes as the arrow whizzes through the air, heading right for the target—

Allison has to blink once, twice, three times, her mouth falling open. The arrow never meets the piece of moss, stopped mid-air. She ignores how her stomach sinks and she deflates slightly. All she can do is stare at the hand now wrapped around her arrow, holding it just no more than two inches away from the tree. 

"What the hell are you doing here?" she asks before she can think twice, her eyes following from the hand, up the arm, straight to the face of the Hale she's possibly been trying to avoid. "Are you following me or something?"

Cora scoffs. "Following you? Please," she rolls her eyes, shifting her gaze to the arrow as she lowers it. "I have better things to do than follow an Argent around. And, I should be the one asking you what _you're_ doing here." She looks back up at her, tilting her head, her eyebrows raising. "This is private property."

The words have Allison laughing slightly out of disbelief. She bites her tongue, shaking her head. 

"Last I remember, your family's house was being torn down," she says, and watches Cora's jaw tighten. "So... technically, this _property_ isn't private, nor does it belong to you in any way. I'm free to practice here as long as I like."

Cora arches an eyebrow. "Practice?"

Allison's the one rolling her eyes now, sighing. The realization that Cora isn't likely to leave her alone anytime soon is a conflicting one. Part of her is tempted to walk away right now, the other is... curious. 

"Yes, I was practising. That is—" she gestures the hand holding the bow at Cora, "—until you decided to catch my arrow. A habit that all you werewolves seem to have picked up. More of an inconvenience when I'm doing this so that I might be able to help save your life from the next group of hunters that show up in town."

She bends, crouching in front of the rest of the arrows she has laid out on the floor of the forest. Her fingers skim over the first one; the only one with a silver arrowhead. Risking losing that right now wouldn't be so smart. She opts for the one next to it, just a plain and simple one she made a few days ago. 

"So, when that inevitably does happen," she continues as she straightens back up, new arrow in hand, already putting it in place against the bow, "I apologize if my aim's a little off and I miss the hunter or possible supernatural creature trying to kill you." She meets Cora's narrowed eyes, feigning innocence. "I didn't get to practice enough. Now—" she lifts her bow once more, only pulling the string back slightly, "—I'd rather not shoot you because you were in the way of my target."

Cora stays where she is for a second or three, just holding her gaze. There's something in the glint in her eyes; curiosity, amusement, something else that Allison can't quite put her finger on. A one-on-one with a werewolf is never fair in terms of being able to suss out the other's emotions. 

Then she's stepping aside, leaving the path to the piece of moss open and ready. Allison tries to relax her shoulders at least a little, pulling the string back completely now. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Cora crossing her arms, watching her. No pressure, Allison thinks to herself.

The second she lets go, she knows it's going to miss. Her hand was shaking the tiniest bit, and she aimed a little too far to the left, throwing off the curve of the arrow completely. She watches it fly through the air only to graze the tree next to the one she was aiming for. It lands on the ground alongside two of the previous ones. 

Cora raises her eyebrows, not even bothering to try and conceal her surprise or confusion. "I thought you were supposed to be good at this."

"I am," Allison bites back, dropping her bow to her side, and Cora doesn't look convinced. She sighs, her shoulders dropping. "I'm just... having an off day, I guess." Cora makes a noise like she's saying _no kidding,_ and Allison quickly adds, "And, you know, I wasn't exactly expecting supervision. It's hard to concentrate when you're standing there just staring at me like that." 

She then moves to go and retrieve all three arrows, setting her bow on the ground. Cora rolls her eyes as she passes her, leaning her head to the side in that signature Hale show of exasperation that's usually followed by some sort of form of acceptance or an apology, usually a reasonable compromise in Derek's case. Not that Allison expects anything of the like out of Cora. 

"Relax, Argent," she says as Allison sinks down, picking up the one she just shot. "I'm the werewolf here, remember? Keep the claws in. I'm only here to make sure you aren't getting yourself killed." 

Allison glances at her over her shoulder, narrowing her eyes in a halfhearted glare. She really wishes that the tiny part of her that actually softens a little at the thought of Cora caring enough about her to make sure she's alright would disappear already. Frustration isn't strong enough to describe how she feels about that.

"Clearly you could use the distraction anyway," she adds, eyeing the arrows pointedly. 

Sweeping them up in her hand, Allison stands back up, turning to face her. Cora's just moving the arrow around her hands as she sends Allison a look that's daring her to argue, tell her to leave. The words are right on the tip of her tongue, happily going to say that she's fine, she would rather be alone, that Cora can feel free to go away. Something that's obviously not a strong point for a Hale. 

She doesn't, though. A part of her stops her from doing so. It's the same part that's been making her avoid Cora around school now that she's decided to join them, the part that she refuses to accept actually somehow manages to get _flustered_ around her. Ignoring it doesn't seem to be working out too well for her. 

Rolling her eyes, she sighs again, throwing her hands up slightly. "Alright, fine. Stay."

If Cora gives a half-smile, half-smirk at that, Allison chooses to ignore it as well. She walks back over to her bow, picking it up again and setting two of the arrows next to the others. 

"I was hoping for a more enthusiastic response, but," Cora shrugs, continuing as she starts walking over to her, "I'll take it. Just... don't shoot me or anything."

Allison doesn't mean to, but her lips twitch at the corners. "Just don't get in the way of any more of my arrows."

Cora actually does smile now, and Allison can't ignore it. It's possibly the least brooding, irritated look she's ever seen a Hale wear. She wants to say it's unsettling, but really, it's more pleasant than anything else. The slight swooping in her stomach definitely gets ignored.

"Deal," Cora says, a lilt to her voice like she's intrigued. 

She pauses and Allison can't help but wait, just in case there's something else. Then she's got a hand wrapped around the bow, pulling it from Allison's grip with ease. The other goes for the arrow, taking it from her as she turns around. 

"Uh, what are you doing?" Allison asks, her eyebrows drawing together. She moves to stand beside her, trying to catch her eye while also reaching out, attempting to take her bow back. 

Cora brushes her off, nocking the arrow. She lifts the bow up, aiming it toward that same piece of moss.

"I want to see what the big deal is with these things," she answers, closing one eye as if to help her see her target better. She then shrugs, rolling her eyes. "Plus, Derek's little scare with nearly losing his powers has him suddenly into learning how to master every weapon, and honestly, I'm getting a bit fed up of being shown how to use a gun that I've known how to fire since I was fourteen."

Allison has to grin at least a little at that, her eyebrows raising. She knew from Scott that Derek was trying to get the hang of proper weapons, but she can't imagine him spending hours trying to convince Cora. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she makes a mental note to possibly circle back to her knowing how to fire a gun at fourteen.

"You seriously want to do this?" she asks, her hands out in front of her, wanting to reach for it once again. "You do know that guns and bows aren't the same things, right? And I'm pretty sure that Derek isn't a big fan of arrows, so..."

Cora scoffs, looking over at her once more. "You're saying you don't think I can fire one arrow? I've had them shot at me since I was five. I think I know how they work." 

Allison starts to protest, about to point out how very different that is, but falters. The confident, convinced look on Cora's face has her wanting to see what will happen. That, and that little part of her may also be enjoying seeing Cora holding her bow. 

She takes a step back, gesturing for her to go ahead. Cora smirks, confidence clear as she turns her sights back on the tree. Allison covers her mouth, biting at the nail of her thumb. One quick sweep of Cora and she can already tell how this is going to end. The tight leather jacket is definitely going to make it a little awkward and her stance is all wrong. Disaster is the only word coming to her mind right about now. 

Still, she watches her adjust the bow and the arrow to her liking. Then she's tilting her head up and her smirk widens the second she lets it go. Allison doesn't even see it go through the air. One second it's there, the next it's gone. The following splintering sound that echoes around them tells her she's definitely going to have to replace at least one arrow.

Cora's eyebrows furrow as Allison bites her lip, trying her best not to smile. She fails, of course, and Cora pauses in the middle of examining the bow to shoot her a glare. It's more puzzled than it is annoyed though. 

"Shut up," she says before Allison can even say anything. "Your arrow must have been faulty. Maybe that's why you've been missing every shot today."

Allison does laugh at that. She shakes her head as she steps closer again. 

"No, I know why I've been missing," she says, recalling her shaking hands. She folds them under her arms, tilting her head as she nods at the bow. "I'm pretty sure that wasn't the problem."

"I watched you do it, I did exactly what you did," Cora protests then rolls her eyes. "With some adjustments, obviously."

Allison pauses, watching as Cora turns her eyes back on the bow. She's still trying to find some visual proof of what went wrong, her confusion only growing as she turns it over, running her fingers over the string. For a moment, she looks tempted to try again and Allison quickly decides that she isn't willing to lose another arrow today. 

The thought that she's going to regret this definitely crosses her mind; purposefully spending more time around Cora, just the two of them, is definitely not going to be good for her, she's sure of that. But she also can't bring herself to just walks away. 

"Okay," Allison sighs. "If you're serious about this then, for starters, you should try not using any werewolf strength." 

Cora looks up at her, her eyebrows furrowing like she has no idea what she's talking about. Allison smiles, gesturing her head toward the tree with a pointed raise of her eyebrows. Realization passes over Cora's face and Allison's going to take a guess and say she had no idea she was even using her heightened abilities. That's definitely something else to ask Scott about. 

"If you do, you're going to have to make me a new arrow," she continues, moving around Cora to get to where she laid out the rest of her things. "Trust me, I've seen Scott attempt to use my bow with his werewolf strength and I've had to replace at least a dozen of them."

Cora's eyebrow now shoot up, a hint of curiosity mixed with a touch of amusement on her face. Allison wonders if she's possibly just added to Cora's teasing Scott, seeing as how she seems to have taken it upon herself to be his Jackson replacement. 

"Got it," she says, her lips twitching the corners as Allison crouches down to get a better look at the arrows she has left, "don't use werewolf strength unless I want to get shot by your dad for being in his house. And around his only daughter."

Allison laughs, rolling her eyes. She picks up one of the arrows before standing again, turning to face Cora. 

"I give you my word that he won't shoot you," she assures her. Although, she can't help but hear her dad shouting _another werewolf_ in the back of her mind. She pretends to look concerned for a second, eyeing her. "But you need to fix your aim. Just in case."

Cora glares at her but it's got no sign of the bite to it that it usually does. It's more playful than anything, really, and Allison honestly thinks that's worse. At least for her it is anyway.

Ignoring the swooping in her stomach, she holds the arrow out for Cora to take. She watches her put it in place before lifting the bow up for the second time. 

"Okay, that's one of the problems."

Allison steps closer, ignoring Cora as she turns her head to send her a confused and somewhat exasperated look. She places a hand lightly on top of the one she has holding the bow. Her fingers pull gently at Cora's, easing them back just a little to loosen her hold. 

"You're gripping it too hard," she explains with a smile as she looks at her. "It could affect your aim."

Cora gives a soft, "oh" and nods in understanding. She relaxes her grip underneath her hand, momentarily distracting Allison with the feeling of her fingers moving against hers. This is the closest she's has been to holding Cora's hand and she's really not sure how she feels about that. She doesn't mean to linger but she's definitely aware that she's doing it, at least somewhere, subconsciously. 

For just a moment, she forgets what's she's supposed to be doing, happy to watch the concentrated look on Cora's face. Then she's quickly snapping herself back before she can notice her staring. Werewolves have that annoying little ability to sniff out emotions. 

"You have to stand at an angle," she continues, drawing Cora's eyes back to her as she quickly lets go of her hand and steps back slightly. "Or else aiming straight ahead isn't going to matter because the arrow will go a completely different way."

Allison brings her hands up to Cora's shoulders now, getting her to turn a little more to her right. Using her own foot, she nudges one of Cora's back, getting her into the right stance. Cora obliges without complaint, easily taking her advice as she adjusts.

"I think I get it," she says, her confidence slipping back into her voice.

She draws the string back experimentally and Allison quickly stops her, gently holding her right elbow in place.

"Don't pull back with your arm." She pushes Cora's elbow up a little more, elevating it to the right position. "You have to use your shoulders and your back muscles. So, just bend this—" she shifts her other hand around to Cora's left arm, getting her to turn it just right, "—and your aim should be a lot better." 

Cora nods, taking it in. She once again draws the bowstring back, but Allison doesn't stop her this time. Her hands move with her, one still on her elbow to help guide her, the other staying in place on her arm, making sure it stays up and aimed at the target. 

"Now just relax, and..."

There's a pause, a missed beat that passes as Cora holds the arrow in place, breathing out. Then she lets it go. It flies, curving just the way it was supposed to. There's a quiet but echoing noise when it hits the tree, lodged right in the centre of the green moss that's been practically taunting Allison since she got here. 

A smile curves her mouth as Cora's eyes widen. Her surprise is clear, her confident act obviously just that. Allison can't help but be a little taken by surprise herself when Cora's face then lights up. It's probably the happiest she's ever seen any Hale. The closest she's seen her come to smiling around her is when she's being sarcastic.

"You did it," Allison says, a hint of pride slipping through, trying to mask it beneath her surprise.

The smile that spreads across Cora's face has her stomach swooping. That familiar flutter in her chest that she's barely conscious of, too distracted to notice. 

"I did," Cora says, still a little disbelieving. Then she's rolling her eyes and adding, "I guess I should thank you. Although, I did technically just help you fire an arrow without missing, so really, I think you should be thanking me."

Allison narrows her eyes at her, and Cora finally turns her head to look at her. She smirks, but there's something playful about that as well, the way it feels like she's trying not to give herself away. Allison definitely knows how that feels, just for an entirely different reason.

She breaks first. As soon as she starts laughing, Cora does too, joining in. It's strange and completely unfamiliar to Allison, but it's definitely something she's enjoying. Knowing that she's happy and laughing because of her. 

It isn't until their laughter begins to fade but they're both still smiling that Allison realizes she's still holding onto Cora. Yet again, she finds herself lingering, wondering how long they can stay like this before Cora will move or question her. Except, she can't help but notice that all Cora has down is lower the bow. Her head's still turned toward her, that soft smile that Allison wishes she would see more often still on her lips. If she didn't know any better, she would say that she's even leaned back into her just a touch. 

She catches her eye and the air gets caught somewhere in her throat as she takes in just how close they really are. The many daydreams she's had about this flashes in the front of her mind, despite trying to block them out. Something tells her it's too late though. Cora's eyebrows have raised the tiniest bit and Allison knows she can sense it.

Her heart misses a beat or two then rushes to catch back up, her stomach sinking. Just as she thought things were starting to look okay, that maybe they could be friends, at least.

She opens her mouth, trying to think of something that sounds plausible, a good enough explanation for the feelings that Cora can obviously sense right now. Before she can though, Cora turns a little more toward her, bringing her hand up to the back of her neck, and pulls her in. 

Allison stops dead in her tracks as soon as Cora's lips touch hers. Her eyes widen, her brain both malfunctioning and racing with a million thoughts at the same time, all revolving around two facts. The first being that she has no idea what's happening and the second is that Cora's lips are unexpectedly soft against hers. 

Cora pulls back, leaving her hand on Allison's neck. She looks up at her, not even bothering to pretend she's worried she just made a mistake, knowing for sure that she didn't. All she waits for is that confirmation from Allison, that little raise of her eyebrows once more asking her what her next move is going to be. 

It all sinks in at once and Allison leans back in without a second thought, much to Cora's obvious delight as her smile returns, slipping into the kiss. It's pretty clear that was what she was hoping for as she kisses back and Allison brings her own hand up to the side of Cora's neck. It's soft, and sweet, and terrifying, and almost exactly how Allison pictured it would feel. 

A part of her just knows that this is going to end up with her having another conversation with her dad that involves more werewolves and how she really doesn't have the best taste when it comes to relationships. She'd have to disagree, and honestly, she's fine with having that conversation if it means that this actually goes somewhere, doesn't end with just a kiss and that's it.

Cora pulls back again, but not too far, and somewhat slow. Almost like she isn't too eager to break it. Her smile is settled happily across her face as she looks up at Allison again. 

"Just so that I know," she starts, her eyes narrowing, "if we're gonna be doing this whole Romeo-and-Juliet, the hunter and the werewolf fall for each other thing, is that guarantee on your dad not shooting me still good? Because I'm already going to have to deal with Derek and his lecture on history repeating and all that crap."

Allison laughs lightly, ducking her head. She's heard that lecture one too many times herself, so she definitely has some sympathy for her on that part. Especially if Derek's the one doing the lecturing. 

When she meets Cora's gaze again, her eyes have softened just a touch. Far more than they usually do. 

"I promise," she repeats. "Scott and Isaac are both, surprisingly, still alive, so... I think you'll be okay." Then she pauses, her face scrunching slightly. "As long as this doesn't mean I'm gonna get the big brother speech from Derek. I really don't think I could handle that." 

"Please," Cora scoffs, "if you hurt me, then it won't be Derek you're dealing with. I have claws and fangs too, remember?" Her lips twitch up slightly at the corners. "But I'll warn him not to give you a hard time. I think he's too preoccupied with Braeden and the pack drama to care that much if I'm dating an Argent anyway." 

Allison raises her eyebrows, that fluttering back in her chest, her stomach swooping. 

"Dating?" she questions, half-teasing, half-surprised. "I didn't think you'd want to make things so official. Not that I don't like the sound of that."

Cora rolls her eyes, saying, "believe it or not, I don't have a habit of kissing people I don't want to be with. So, yeah, I think that means we're official. As in, you get to say that you have a werewolf for a girlfriend." She then pauses, something seemingly crossing her mind. "That's if... that's what you want?"

Allison smiles, biting back the immediate answer of _yes_ that's waiting on the tip of her tongue. Her head tilts as she asks, "Are you going soft on me, Hale?"

"Bite me, Argent."

Neither of them makes a comment about how Cora's the one with the fangs out of the two of them. Though Allison is tempted, the opportunity almost too good to miss. She can imagine Stiles being mad that she doesn't take it. 

There's a pause between them. Comfortable, but waiting as Allison now pretends to think about it. Cora obviously seems to sense that she doesn't need to, has known that Allison's had feelings for her for months. Still, she waits for her to give her answer, and that only makes Allison even more positive that she's making the right decision, despite what she knows her dad is probably going to say. 

She strokes her thumb along Cora's cheek, unable to help herself. She nods and watches Cora's eyebrows go up, the smile that begins to curve her lips. 

"Yeah," Allison finally decides, though she never really had to think about it. "I want that. I want you to be my girlfriend."

The smile that Cora had when she shot that arrow is nothing compared to the bright one she's now wearing.

"Then it's official," she says, almost teasingly, and Allison smiles right back at her. Then she's got that mischievous, signature Hale sort of look on her face. "Now, as my girlfriend, I feel it's only fair that you keep teaching me how to use this bow. To defend myself and all that human stuff. Wouldn't want your girlfriend getting hurt, would you?"

Allison rolls her eyes but nods again. "I would not. Yeah, okay. I can handle spending a little more time with you." 

Cora raises her eyebrows at that, almost smirking. "Is that so? Well, how about we throw in me repaying the favour and..." she pauses to think, glancing away before she shrugs, "giving you a few tips on self-defense against werewolves that even your dad wouldn't know."

"That sounds fair," Allison agrees, her smile widening as she tries to bite it back.

"Good," Cora says, "it's a plan."

Then she's leaning back up again, completely ignoring the bow still in her left hand once again. Allison doesn't even mind now that her practice session has been cut a little short. Especially since it sounds like she's going to be enjoying the rest of them a lot more from now on. 

The kiss doesn't last too long, but it's enough. Then Allison decides she might as well show Cora a few more pointers while they're still here. She doesn't think she's enjoyed staying in the preserve until it's dark more than she has today, just her and Cora, the one person she never thought she would be spending more than ten minutes alone with. The barrier between hunters and werewolves, and Argents and Hales, is well and truly broken. At least in Beacon Hills, that's for sure.


End file.
